Panathinaikos overcame European exclusion by asserting themselves against Aris with a 3-0 victory inside Agios Thomas to remain at the top of the Women's Volley League. The Greens produced a full performance against the team that had inflicted their only championship defeat so far. Aris only matched the leaders in the second set, which reflected their strong season and derby character.
In the first set, the service from Panathinaikos created severe problems for Aris. Stepanenko executed the switch at 9-7 before Papafotiou took over serving responsibilities until 16-7. Aris temporarily closed the gap to 16-11 following consecutive errors from Panathinaikos, but the hosts responded to lead 21-11 and completed an easy 25-14 set win.
The second set unfolded differently as Aris worked much better on the first ball to keep the score level until 15-15. Papafotiou served again to push Panathinaikos ahead 18-15, but Aris narrowed the gap against Mercado to 19-18 and equalized at 21-21 through a defensive point by Evans.
Panathinaikos regained a two-point cushion at 23-21 following an out by Mercado. Aris missed a chance to draw level at 23-22 when Kioutsiouki made a wrong pass, allowing Hatziefstratiadou to close out the set 25-23.
Panathinaikos established an 8-4 lead early in the third set before an ace from Evans pulled Aris back to 8-7. Hatziefstratiadou served Panathinaikos from 9-8 up to 15-8, creating a decisive margin as Aris fell behind 21-10 before losing the set 25-15.
Panathinaikos won the match 3-0 with set scores of 25-14, 25-23, and 25-15 in 75 minutes. Points for Panathinaikos came from 6 aces, 45 attacks, 7 blocks, and 17 opponent errors. Points for Aris came from 2 aces, 33 attacks, 3 blocks, and 14 opponent errors.
Olympiacos victory over Lamia
Olympiacos defeated Lamia 3-0 in indoor Renti to open game 20 of the Women's Volley League. The red-whites recorded their eighth consecutive victory, facing resistance only during the second set.
Lamia responded to a loss in the first set by taking a 13-16 lead in the second set. Olympiacos answered with a 6-0 run to make it 20-16, securing the second set before easily controlling the final set.
Olympiacos completed the 3-0 win with set scores of 25-12, 25-21, and 25-16 in 70 minutes. Olympiacos earned points from 5 aces, 44 attacks, 13 blocks, and 13 opponent errors. Lamia scored through 3 aces, 30 attacks, 2 blocks, and 14 opponent errors.
AEK win against Porphyras
AEK celebrated a three-point victory in New Philadelphia with a 3-1 win over Porphyras in game 20. Union rose to third place in the table with 45 points, holding a one-point advantage over PAOK while playing one extra match.
AEK easily built a 2-0 advantage with set wins of 25-19 and 25-11. Popi Kalli made her debut on the bench for Porphyras, and her athletes did not give up, taking the third set 25-22 to renew interest in the match.
AEK established an 8-3 lead in the fourth set and gradually widened the difference to win 25-15. AEK won the match 3-1 with set scores of 25-19, 25-11, 22-25, and 25-15 in 83 minutes. AEK scored from 6 aces, 58 attacks, 8 blocks, and 25 opponent errors. Porphyras produced 8 aces, 36 attacks, 7 blocks, and 19 opponent errors.
AO Thira defeat Markopoulo on Santorini
AO Thira struggled to prevail against Markopoulo in a 3-0 win on Santorini behind attacking performances from Mitrovic, Abbott, and Holston. De Jesus saved the first set ball held by AO Thira to give Markopoulo an opportunity to lead, but Santorini responded to claim the opening set 28-26 following a block by Dialla.
In the second set, a 16-14 scoreline stretched to 21-15 behind the serving of Adamopoulou as AO Thira won 25-20. Top scorer Mitrovic landed an attack to give AO Thira a 5-2 lead in the third set, growing the difference to 25-17.
AO Thira completed the 3-0 victory with set scores of 28-26, 25-20, and 25-17 in 78 minutes. Points for AO Thira came from 6 aces, 44 attacks, 10 blocks, and 18 opponent errors. Markopoulo scored from 3 aces, 37 attacks, 6 blocks, and 17 opponent errors.
Amazons overcome Elysiakos in Nea Erithraia
Amazons defeated Elysiakos 3-1 in Nea Erithraia to climb to eighth place in the table. The victory brought Amazons to 24 points in the championship, making them favorites to advance to the playoffs as they sit two points ahead of Lamia with a game in hand.
Elysiakos won the opening set 23-25 before losing the second set 25-22 in detail. Elysiakos led 1-6 in the third set, but Amazons narrowed the score from 10-12 to lead 15-12 and closed out the set 25-21.
The teams were level at 13-13 in the fourth set before Amazons broke away with a 5-0 run to take the set 25-17. Amazons won 3-1 with set scores of 23-25, 25-22, 25-21, and 25-17 in 104 minutes. Amazons gained points from 4 aces, 59 attacks, 11 blocks, and 24 opponent errors. Elysiakos posted 9 aces, 50 attacks, 8 blocks, and 18 opponent errors.
PAOK beat Panathinaikos in Men's Volley League
PAOK defeated Panathinaikos 3-1 in Maroussi to take an important step toward securing top spot in the first phase of the Men's Volley League. High spectator numbers delayed the match by half an hour.
Panathinaikos and PAOK traded points halfway through the first set before the Greens used strong service to secure a small margin and win 25-23. PAOK led 13-15 in the second set before Raptis served Panathinaikos into a 17-15 lead. PAOK head coach Kalmazidis made changes, and performances by Gatsis alongside a block from Sotiriou helped PAOK turn a 20-18 deficit into a 20-25 set win.
With momentum soaring, PAOK dominated the rest of the game to win the third set 25-22. PAOK led 15-20 in the fourth set before Panathinaikos captain Jacobsen served to tie the score, but PAOK prevailed 25-27 to complete the 3-1 match victory.
Markopoulo win rescheduled Round 16 match
Markopoulo defeated Porphyras 3-1 in a rescheduled Round 16 Women's Volley League match in the Mediterranean. Dimitris Markakis debuted on the bench for Markopoulo with a victory.
The win lifted Markopoulo to 18 points in the league, reducing the gap to Amazons to three points with two games in hand against Amazons and Panathinaikos. After taking the first set 25-18, Markopoulo allowed Porphyras to equalize 1-1 with a 19-25 set win.
Markopoulo pressed from the service line with 10 aces to 2, causing problems for Porphyras. Armed with good service and well-placed blocks, Markopoulo won the third set 25-17 and the fourth set 25-12 to complete the 3-1 win in 90 minutes. Markopoulo scored from 10 aces, 51 attacks, 10 blocks, and 23 opponent errors. Porphyras registered 2 aces, 45 attacks, 7 blocks, and 18 opponent errors.